Hydro-fracturing has helped in unlocking enormous amounts of natural gas and oil from the shale rock in different parts of the world. However, the challenge that many gas and oil companies face is in the produced water treatment. Hydraulic fracturing consumes large quantities of fresh water. This water comes from sources that living organisms and human beings depend on for supply of water that they need to survive.
In return, hydraulic fracturing systems produce water that is contaminated with chemicals. If this water finds its way into water bodies such as rivers and lakes, it can greatly damage aquatic lives. In addition, if it is left to flow freely among the surrounding communities it poses great threat to them and to the environment. This is one of the major threats to the expansion of hydro-fracturing industry.
However, there are firms that are now offering water treatment services to gas and oil companies. In the past, these companies were disposing the produced water also called flow back into deep disposal wells. In these wells, the water was eliminated from the cycle of the ground water making it impossible for it to find its way back to the water bodies. However, this was very expensive.
Modern companies are offering water treatment solutions that are not only efficient but also cost-effective. Using contemporary technologies, these firms are able to treat the produced water reducing the initial cost of disposing the water by half. Using innovative technologies, the companies are able to reduce chances of toxic substances spilling to the environment.
Concerns over produced water treatment included pollution of water bodies as well as other environmental issues caused by hydraulic fracturing. In places where water supply is not enough, using the available water in the hydro-fracturing systems and then disposing it was not a good option. This caused a problem where living organisms were competing for water with gas and oil companies.
This has made water treatment technology very important for the hydro-fracturing systems. Gas and oil producing companies are now able to treat water at their fracturing sites and reusing it. This is not only reducing the cost of transporting water to the treatment facilities or even disposal wells, but also enhancing efficiency. These companies are also reducing damages that chemicals in the produced water would have on their tankers.
Thus, a company that engages in on site treatment of the produced water stands to enjoy a wide range of benefits including saving cost and minimizing environmental impact of its operations.
Hydraulic fracturing is becoming popular across the world. This makes produced water treatment a necessity for the expansion of this industry. Visit Flatirons Chemicals for more details.
